Características de los pseudoictus en un hospital público de Salta, Argentina

Introduction

Limited time to perform thrombolytic treatment in acute ischemic stroke, associated with initial normality in CT in the first hours, results in many cases in a difficult differentiation with “Stroke Mimic” (SM). The objective of this study was to determine the percentage of patients admitted to the San Bernardo Hospital in Salta Capital with an initial diagnosis of stroke, who were finally diagnosed as SM, as well as to describe their characteristics.

Material and methods

An observational, prospective, cross-sectional study was carried out for 16 months, including all hospitalized patients who had an initial diagnosis of acute ischemic stroke. Epidemiological data, history, data of the episode, FABS scale and a depression scale were collected. The final diagnosis was determined by neuroimaging or by ABCD2 score in case of transient ischemic attack. The necessary statistics were calculated to assess significant differences between both groups.

Results

155 cases were analyzed, of which 27 were SM. The SM group showed a higher percentage of women, a higher educational level and a lower percentage of hypertension. Regarding the FABS scale, most of its variables showed an association with the presence of SM (absence of facial paralysis, history of seizures, age under 50 years, systolic blood pressure at admission less than 150 mmHg and isolated sensory symptoms) We also could estimate that the higher the FABS scale score, the greater the possibility of having SM.

Conclusion

Knowing the variables that are most frequently associated with SM can facilitate the differential diagnosis and in this regard, we highlight the usefulness of the FABS scale for this purpose. Knowing local data can help improve diagnostic accuracy.